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Hello, my hubby has a job interview in Brockton. I have heard bad things about Brockton itself, but was wondering what nice towns are nearby. Important things to us are culture, restaurants. good library, good/cheap shopping, possible college nearby, places to go walking/hiking, and as inexpensive as possible. We will be renting at first and the most we can afford is around 1200 -1500 a month. Driving 30 minutes or so to restaurants, shopping, etc. would be ok but we would really like a place close by to walk our dog and enjoy scenery. Nearby farmers markets or farms would also be a huge plus as I am a foodie. Thanks!!
Easton is nice. Stonehill College and the beautiful Borderland State Park. It might be a little sleepy for you and I doubt there are rentals that cheap.
Bridgewater has a state college and the rentals would be less.
I went to High School in Brockton and grew up in Stoughton. Both are having hard times right now.
If you can afford high property taxes (largely for the schools) consider Sharon. People on here don't seem to like it generally, as it is not a community full of restaurants. I like to cook at home, so that doesn't bother me.
It's old New England, sleepy, has a lovely town pond and walking trails, and minimal development. It's near good inexpensive food and shopping (Costco and IKEA are in Stoughton. Good seasonal produce locally. I would move there but can't afford those taxes. If your budget extends to upper 300,000s + it might be a good investment. Homes in Sharon (right on the commuter lines to Providence and Boston) are unlikely to decline in value.
I went to High School in Brockton and grew up in Stoughton. Both are having hard times right now.
If you can afford high property taxes (largely for the schools) consider Sharon. People on here don't seem to like it generally, as it is not a community full of restaurants. I like to cook at home, so that doesn't bother me.
It's old New England, sleepy, has a lovely town pond and walking trails, and minimal development. It's near good inexpensive food and shopping (Costco and IKEA are in Stoughton. Good seasonal produce locally. I would move there but can't afford those taxes. If your budget extends to upper 300,000s + it might be a good investment. Homes in Sharon (right on the commuter lines to Providence and Boston) are unlikely to decline in value.
Saying both Stoughton and Brockton are having hard times is silly. Brockton is in really bad shape and Stoughton really isn't in the grand scheme of things. Of course if you compare Stoughton to Sharon then on paper Stoughton doesn't perform well.
Your hypothetical budget of upper $300,000s in Sharon buys you a teardown or a house in need of so much renovation that it's not worth it in most cases (the same budget in Stoughton buys you a house in move in ready condition). I'd say you need a budget of at least $450k+ to buy a decent house in Sharon that is in move in condition nowadays and even that won't necessarily get you anything fancy.
I grew up in Stoughton, and I will say here that I still love it, but it has a crime problem, a heroin problem, and a problem in the city center. I wouldn't recommend anyone to live there. I visit regularly, and friends and family still living there would say the same that I am saying here.
Sharon is what my part of the world used to be like, except Sharon costs a fortune now.
Maybe the code here is that Brockton has more of an African American population than Stoughton. Both cities ... the poster should just check the Trulia crime stats. Stoughton is a small town and doesn't have the same statistics per capita but it is very high. Has nothing to do with ethnic groups and everything to do with very strong drug dealing in the area. The percentage of crime in relation to the population of Stoughton is very high, even for the South Shore. It's going up in all the communities surrounding Brockton.
I grew up in Stoughton, and I will say here that I still love it, but it has a crime problem, a heroin problem, and a problem in the city center. I wouldn't recommend anyone to live there. I visit regularly, and friends and family still living there would say the same that I am saying here.
1) Heroin is affecting all of Massachusetts, even Sharon.
2) Define crime problem.
3) If your friends and family hate it so much why haven't they moved yet?
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Sharon is what my part of the world used to be like, except Sharon costs a fortune now.
Most places don't look the same way they did decades ago.
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Maybe the code here is that Brockton has more of an African American population than Stoughton. Both cities ... the poster should just check the Trulia crime stats. Stoughton is a small town and doesn't have the same statistics per capita but it is very high. Has nothing to do with ethnic groups and everything to do with very strong drug dealing in the area. The percentage of crime in relation to the population of Stoughton is very high, even for the South Shore. It's going up in all the communities surrounding Brockton.
I just checked. Most of it is traffic stops and other general silliness like routine patrols that shouldn't be considered a "crime." (Trulia is even ridiculous enough to list cell checks inside the police station as a "crime" lol). Personally I'm grateful the cops pull people over near my house for traffic violations.
You brought race up- I'm not really sure why. Brockton IS a dangerous place compared to just about ANY surrounding town. The fact that the population there is mostly minorities is only a factor for people who choose to make it one.
Brocktonb is very underrated. It has some superb neighborhoods and an award winning high school. Most people do not realize that the BHS Drama Club just won the state title again! Brockton has some issues with its core downtown area but if you leave that section you'll find superb neighborhoods with gorgeous homes. The Braemoor area is top notch as is the Heights. Check out Brockton.........trust me you'll be surprised!
Hello, my hubby has a job interview in Brockton. I have heard bad things about Brockton itself, but was wondering what nice towns are nearby. Important things to us are culture, restaurants. good library, good/cheap shopping, possible college nearby, places to go walking/hiking, and as inexpensive as possible. We will be renting at first and the most we can afford is around 1200 -1500 a month. Driving 30 minutes or so to restaurants, shopping, etc. would be ok but we would really like a place close by to walk our dog and enjoy scenery. Nearby farmers markets or farms would also be a huge plus as I am a foodie. Thanks!!
Dartmouth fits the bill for all of your criteria except that it's about a 45 minute commute to Broctkon. Dartmouth has a number of apartment communities within your price range. It also has a lot of box retail (including a little mall) and chain dining right in town, and excellent local fare interspersed throughout the area (especially seafood). Dartmouth covers a large area and it ranges from suburban to rural. The far south of Dartmouth is coastal and is extremely pretty. The rest of the are South of Route 6 is mostly historic farmland with a number of independent farms like Silverbrook, Apponagansett, and Alderbrook. There are some vineyards and wineries (Running Brook in town, Westport Rivers next door) in and around Dartmouth as well. Also an excellent (carbon neutral) brewery just across the town line at Buzzard's Bay. Dartmouth is actually part of the Farm Coast region of SE MA and RI which is a name that sort of encompasses the region's farms, galleries, shops, wineries, etc.
Dartmouth is about 30 minutes to Providence, RI, 30 to Newport and an hour (give or take depending on traffic) to Boston. It's 25-30 minutes to the Bourne Bridge and Cape Cod. New Bedford right next door is a tough old city, but the downtown area is pretty and has good shopping and dining (part of it is a National Historic Park) and some neat museums and galleries. Some info: DNB INC, AHA New Bedford, New Bedford Guide, Whaling District NHP. UMass Dartmouth is right in town although it's not exactly organically ingrained into the town the way a campus like Bridgewater State is (UMD is tucked away in the woods). It's still nice to have that collegiate influence though.
For rentals, I'd check out Ledgewood Commons or Dartmouth Woods. I lived in the latter for a bit (until last month). If you look into Dartmouth Woods, definitely go over your Apartment carefully. While the units are all relatively new and nice, they often cut corners to turn them around quickly. Management is friendly enough, but they employ a skeleton crew for maintenance and getting help often takes longer than it should (make friends with the crew). Other than that, it's a pleasant place to rent. You may or may not know, but New England is notorious for most rentals being located in 2-3 family homes (many a hundred or so years old), so newer complexes like Dartmouth Woods are few and far between. Especially in quieter towns (Fall River, New Bedford, Brockton, Taunton, etc. have plenty).
Bridgewater, Middleborough (check out Kensington Court right on the commuter rail line), Norton, Foxboro, Raynham, etc. are all a bit closer and could work for rentals while you get a better feel for the region. Sharon, Easton and Mansfield are excellent communities, but also on the pricier end.
Dartmouth fits the bill for all of your criteria except that it's about a 45 minute commute to Broctkon. Dartmouth has a number of apartment communities within your price range. It also has a lot of box retail (including a little mall) and chain dining right in town, and excellent local fare interspersed throughout the area (especially seafood). Dartmouth covers a large area and it ranges from suburban to rural. The far south of Dartmouth is coastal and is extremely pretty. The rest of the are South of Route 6 is mostly historic farmland with a number of independent farms like Silverbrook, Apponagansett, and Alderbrook. There are some vineyards and wineries (Running Brook in town, Westport Rivers next door) in and around Dartmouth as well. Also an excellent (carbon neutral) brewery just across the town line at Buzzard's Bay. Dartmouth is actually part of the Farm Coast region of SE MA and RI which is a name that sort of encompasses the region's farms, galleries, shops, wineries, etc.
Dartmouth is about 30 minutes to Providence, RI, 30 to Newport and an hour (give or take depending on traffic) to Boston. It's 25-30 minutes to the Bourne Bridge and Cape Cod. New Bedford right next door is a tough old city, but the downtown area is pretty and has good shopping and dining (part of it is a National Historic Park) and some neat museums and galleries. Some info: DNB INC, AHA New Bedford, New Bedford Guide, Whaling District NHP. UMass Dartmouth is right in town although it's not exactly organically ingrained into the town the way a campus like Bridgewater State is (UMD is tucked away in the woods). It's still nice to have that collegiate influence though.
For rentals, I'd check out Ledgewood Commons or Dartmouth Woods. I lived in the latter for a bit (until last month). If you look into Dartmouth Woods, definitely go over your Apartment carefully. While the units are all relatively new and nice, they often cut corners to turn them around quickly. Management is friendly enough, but they employ a skeleton crew for maintenance and getting help often takes longer than it should (make friends with the crew). Other than that, it's a pleasant place to rent. You may or may not know, but New England is notorious for most rentals being located in 2-3 family homes (many a hundred or so years old), so newer complexes like Dartmouth Woods are few and far between. Especially in quieter towns (Fall River, New Bedford, Brockton, Taunton, etc. have plenty).
Bridgewater, Middleborough (check out Kensington Court right on the commuter rail line), Norton, Foxboro, Raynham, etc. are all a bit closer and could work for rentals while you get a better feel for the region. Sharon, Easton and Mansfield are excellent communities, but also on the pricier end.
Dartmouth definitely looks a good place to live that is near Brockton. Just hope the commute to Brockton isn't too bad especially in bad weather.
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